Strangers and Shadows (43 page)

The bells hanging from the door clanged into each other as he opened the door.  The clerk behind the counter looked up for a brief second, and then only so far as to make sure Wizard was not a masked gunman.  He quickly returned to the gossip magazine he was perusing.

Wizard walked to the back of the store and picked up the largest bottle of water he could find.  His throat was parched and with good reason.  Between the smoke of explosions and the dust of Nebraska, Wizard couldn’t remember the last time his body had been through such an ordeal.

He walked up to the counter and set the bottle down.  “How much?”

The brown skinned man looked up with dead eyes.  His name tag said Joe but his accent was thick, leading Wizard to suspect that the man’s name was most likely not Joe.  Joe swiped the bottle past the scanner.  “Two dollars and seventy-nine cents.”

Wizard reached into his—what had those kids called it?—fanny pack, grabbing a wad of bills that he had stocked for the occasion.  He handed the man a twenty and hoped that he’d remembered the right currency for this world.

Joe took the bill and examined it closely, holding it up to the light.  Finally he grabbed a marker and drew a line on the bill.  “Huh.” He said. “It’s old as my wife, but it checks out.  I haven’t seen one of these old bills in a long time.”  Joe made change and handed it back to a relieved Wizard.

“Say, Joe,” Wizard began, “You wouldn’t happen to know how I could get to New York City, would you?”

Joe thought for  a moment.  “Well, you could fly there.  Or walk.  Or drive.  Or you could take the bus.”

Wizard considered whether the man was being sarcastic or just thorough, and in the end couldn’t decide either way.  Walking was definitely out of the question, and he was sure that he hadn’t brought enough cash to buy a vehicle to drive himself.  Besides, he wasn’t entirely certain that he
could
drive. 

That left flying or taking the bus.  As Wizard didn’t feel like wandering around Lincoln, Nebraska trying to find a fake ID that would hold up to airport security inspection, nor did he know if he’d brought enough cash for such a thing as well as a plane ticket, that left only one option.

“Where might the nearest bus station be?”

Joe beamed.  “Well, right here, of course.”  He motioned to the Grey Hound Express sign that hung above the cash register.  “Where would you like to be going, sir?”

Wizard tried to place Joe’s accent, Indian maybe?  “New York City, please,” Wizard said, settling into the decision.  It would be good for him to have some time to think through his next few steps.

Joe typed something into his computer and after several minutes said, “Ah, you are in the good luck, my friend.  There is a bus coming through in a few hours for New York City.  It is only having six transfers.  Do you want?”

“
Six transfers?
” Wizard asked.  “Is there anything that’s a little more direct?”

Joe tapped a few more keys and replied, “There is another bus tomorrow night coming that is only with four transfers.  Do you want that one?”

“No, no.  Just give me the first one.”

“That will be… Two hundred, twenty-one dollars please.”  Joe still had a huge smile on his face.  Wizard could only guess as to why.  Maybe this ticket was more business than he usually did in a full weeks time, or maybe Joe just liked to travel by bus.

Wizard pulled his money back out and gave most of it over to Joe.  He was left with just under seventy-five dollars.  Joe handed him the ticket and thanked him for his patronage.

Checking the ticket, Wizard saw he had just over three hours until the bus was supposed to arrive.  Plenty of time to fix his money situation, if—“Joe, is there a public net connection that I can use?”

Joe tapped his pursed lips before arriving at an answer.  “We were used to having a wi-fi connection at the store, but too many kids were coming to sit outside and use it without buying anything, so we say no more.  But there is coffee place down the street that way,” he pointed, “that has free wi-fi, I think.  And coffee is not bad either.”  Joe laughed at this last part, but if there was a joke in there, either it was too local for Wizard to understand, or Joe should definitely not quit his day job.

Wizard thanked the man once again and made his way down the street to the coffee shop.

She was already up, standing at the balcony, his shirt the only thing she was wearing.  Jack smiled at the sight, her long smooth legs bare, the breeze gently wafting the tail of his shirt, every now and then giving him a peek at what laid beneath.  

He rose, shirtless, and joined her on the sunlit balcony, slipping his arms beneath hers and kissing her neck.

“Hey, sleepy head,” Celia said, arching her head back for a quick kiss.  “Sleep good?”

“Very well, thank you.”  Jack turned to take in the scenery. 

 Below them, people walked every which way, crossing the street haphazardly, dodging the cars and trucks that seemed indifferent to their presence on the street.  Many of the pedestrians sat at tables on the sidewalk, drinking coffee or espresso.  Some read the paper, others conversed with friends.  They seemed to have all the time in the world.

Out in the distance, the Eiffel Tower rose against the Paris skyline.  Jack had only ever seen pictures and old vids of it in his timeline, so when Celia asked him where he wanted to spend the next few days while they waited for Wizard to get set up in New York, Jack had jumped at the chance.  So far the city had not let him down, it was just like the old vids.

“You’re up pretty early,” Jack said.  “Everything alright?”

She turned and gazed deeply into his eyes.  “Right now, everything is perfect.”  She kissed him again, long and slow.

When the moment had ended Jack persisted, “And how about not,
right now
, mindreader?”

“I’ve just been thinking about what’s been going on, and what we’re about to embark on…”  She turned back to look out on the city again, her eyes far away.  “Once I started, I couldn’t go back to sleep.”

“Are you worried?” Jack asked.

“Are
you
?”

“You already know I am…”

“Yeah, I do.”  She smiled.  “And don’t you forget it,” she teased.

“How could I possibly forget, when you remind me how much you know at every turn?” The joke got a short laugh out of her.  It was a welcome sound to Jack’s ears.  A beautiful woman laughing because of you is one of the absolute treasures in life.  “But seriously, Celia…”

She ended the laugh with a half smirk-half snarl.  “I’m not sure how I feel about it.  I’m not used to feeling like this about life.”

“Feeling like what?” Jack asked.

“…vulnerable, I guess.”

“Well, welcome to the way the rest of the world lives,” Jack said, trying to lighten the mood.  “Come on, let’s get dressed.  We still have a few hours before we have to go meet Wizard, let’s not waste it sitting here
feeling
things.”

Celia laughed and consented.

The rest of their time in Paris was spent walking the streets, arm in arm, taking in the sights, watching children play in the park.  They had breakfast at a sidewalk cafe.  Afterward they found a deserted alley, held each other by the hand, and then jumped to New York.  And just like that, the vacation was over.

The bus ride had been long, but not unproductive.  With the Grey Hound’s wireless connection, it had given Wizard plenty of time to set his affairs in order.  He’d written his financial code, and even now, the bank accounts he’d set up were siphoning money from millions of different places, giving him more than enough capital to undertake his venture.

He’d also been able to set up a secure line of communication to the Seventh, where he’d learned of the protective detail on Julia White and arranged for the agent he’d had his eye on for a while, to obtain and deliver a sample of the nano-virus to him here in the Third.

Knowing that the agent would be burned, Wizard had also taken the liberty of arranging a safe haven for the agent’s family, complete with back stories and the proper documents and funded bank accounts.  They would have a comfortable life where they would be safe from retribution from the Seventh.

He was expecting to hear from the agent at any moment.

Wizard had found a small warehouse down in Brooklyn that met his needs perfectly.  Before the bus ever pulled into Penn Station, he had wired the funds to the realtor’s office and arranged for her to meet him at the station with the keys and contract.

He’d taken a taxi to the warehouse and upon arriving, discovered that some of the supplies he had ordered had already been delivered.

Wizard had just finished putting the brand new centrifuge through a test spin when he heard the alert.  He checked it and discovered he was in danger of being late for his meeting with Celia and Mr. Spade.

He kicked some empty boxes out of the way and made for the door.  Just before stepping outside, he thought better of it and went back to retrieve his coat.  It looked like it might rain.

Halfway down the block on his way to hail a cab, it started raining. 
Great,
Wizard thought, sarcastically at first, but then he realized it might actually help clear the streets a little and make it easier to pick Celia and Jack out of the crowd.  

After several soaking minutes, Wizard finally found a taxi and was on his way.

The meet was set for the tip of the triangle in Times Square.  Their Seventh-issued comms wouldn’t work here in the Third, or anywhere for that matter, without the satellite links that they operated on.  Wizard had only been able to contact his agent in the Seventh by keeping a jump gate open, but he dared not do such a thing again.  It was risky to do it once, but to do so twice would be like sending an invitation with your home address stamped on it to your enemy.

When Wizard found them he would be able to adjust the comms to work on the infrastructure of the Third, but that would require some in-person tinkering.  Until then, he would just have to hope that the meeting place was sufficient.

The rain hadn’t lessened as Wizard arrived at his destination.  It seemed it also hadn’t emptied the busy streets as he had hoped either.  Frowning, he paid the cabbie, and thanked him, although there were a few moments when he was sure the driver had meant to kill them both.

Wizard took in his surroundings, trying to gain his bearings.  Hundreds of umbrellas skittered every which way around the busy intersection.  He tried to spot Jack and Celia, looking for two umbrellas standing still.  It was very hard to make any out, almost like trying to find two leaves on a tree that weren’t moving in the breeze.

Suddenly the thought occurred to him, that like himself, perhaps they would not have acquired two umbrellas, let alone one.  His gaze then started to fall on the people sharing an umbrella or the comparatively few who had no umbrella at all.

One by one he checked them off.  Not them.  Not them.  Not…

Did he have the wrong spot?  Did they?

He checked again.  No, he was definitely in the right spot.  Maybe they had…

Just as he was about to back track further down the triangle, he spotted them.

They were walking arm in arm, heads slightly bent down and in toward each other, as if such a thing would fend off the rain.  They were moving along rather quickly, Wizard thought, no doubt trying to spend as little time as possible in this downpour, but when he caught Celia’s eye he knew that something wasn’t right.

The couple walked right past Wizard and crossed the street without so much as slowing down.

Unsure of what was going on, Wizard followed at a distance of several meters.  When the pair entered an electronics store, Wizard did the same.

Inside he was greeted by bright lights and loud music.  Laptops, tablets, and gaming consoles lined the walls in every conceivable location.  Children were fighting over who got to play the video game demo next, while their mother was enduring the not so subtle flirtations of a floor salesman.

The store was packed with shoppers, or perhaps they were just people trying to escape the rain.  Wizard gently, patiently made his way through the crowd to where Jack and Celia were waiting.  They pretended to be checking out the latest tablet.

“I hear that model is out of this world,” Wizard chuckled after delivering the corny line.

Jack snickered.

“Sorry for the run around, but I think we may have picked up a tail,” Celia said.  “I couldn’t be sure.  Better safe than sorry…”

“You did the right thing,” Wizard said.  “I’ll make this fast, just in case you’re right.”  He reached his hand into the large pockets of his overcoat and pulled out two cell phones.  “Here…” He handed one to each of them.  “The user interface is absolutely ancient, but I’ve set the warehouse’s location in the GPS, and my comm code, I mean phone number, is already programmed in as well.  You two should split up and make your way there separately.  And don’t go straight there, either, just in case you are actually being followed.”

“It’s not our first rodeo,” Jack said.

“Yes, well, nevertheless…  I’ll see you both back at the warehouse.  Oh, here, I almost forgot.”  Wizard handed them each a credit card.  “The funds aren’t unlimited, but there should be more than enough on there for any needs you might have.”

Jack left first, followed by Celia several minutes later.  Wizard waited around for twenty more minutes.  He pretended to be quite interested in the workings of the various gadgets around the store.  He was just about to head back out into the rain when he saw the man and woman.

“You were only supposed to take a sample,” Wizard said.

“They were going to kill her.  And besides, she would have known about the sample being taken.  If they don’t already know what you’re up to, they most certainly would have extracted the information from her before they destroyed her body,” Mikhail said.

“Hey!” Ava objected.  “I hate them for what they did to me just as much as you all do.”

Wizard pondered the change of plans.  “Well, not much we can do about it now, is there?  Come on, let’s get you back to the warehouse.”